Method of combustion.



A. RECTOR.

METHOD 0F- CMBUSTION. APPLICATIO'N FILED SEPT 26. i910. RENEWED MAY19.1915.

Putenfpd'June 29, 1915.

Auurrfnu s'ratrns PATENT oF-Fica.

' Ancoim endroit, orwnwyom, Npfy., AssIGNoR To :moron ses LM-bomjrm, o?

. NEwYoRK, N, yf., A CORPORATION oF inemr Yami;

spammen @Letters Patent. .repented June 29, `15915.

" .applicaun' alea .september 2e, 'lalajseriai 110.5853313.neaeweqnayie, 1915;.- Seel 110.29324.

Beit known that L ALG'ORN Recrea,citi-` lZenl oj thefUnited Sta.tes'residing atNeW York city, in the 'coun-ty and State'of] New York,temporarily residing in vthe i city; of Pittsburgh,'in the countyof'Allegheny andA -Stat'e of Pennsylvania, -havefinvented cerf tainnei".7 yand useful' improvements vin Methods of Combustion, ofwhic'hthefolJ lowing is a specification, reference.beingl had therein totheaccompanying drawings.

This vinyentlonrelates to: a. method of conrbustion of any gasor Iotherffuel,'it svobject tent, requires more' air than .artificial gasy to'effect combustion, tall and expensive Chimneys are requirech involving'plant acces- 1 sories that .are lconstructed, opera-ted andmaintain'edfat great expense, .and which are -so inefficient that largequantities 'of-.car-

bonaceous material issue a's Waste 4from the chimneys', to the detrimento'f health o'r Icon- 'venience 'and .to the injury" of hu1ld1ngs,etc.

lVhile my'invention is ofparticular applicability in removing the,objections noted in connection mithnatu'ral'gas, my method mayY be'-vWell employed in the burning of artificialcombustible gases,l assetforth 1n my application Serial No. 583,775, of eveny date' herewith andfiled. Septemberv 26, 1910.-

' In the accompanyingV drawings, illustrating thev principle' of myinventionv andthe best mode now known to me of applying l thatprinciple, Figure. lv is mainly a,- dla-"- gram'matic View.'y o'apparatus useful in practising nay-intention. This View shows ope'formof novel apparatus.l Fig; 2 is a vaew'isimilar to Fig. Il, of a.somewhat'dlf.

ferent formof apparatus. 1 FigV 3 is lanjend view ,of What 'issho'wn' 1nFig.v 1;

@In Fig.Y 1,1 show an'ovel form of air and v 'gas supply apparatus,consisting of a.-cen tral air tube l formed at itsbutt'end with a.cross-piece 2 that is formed with a.tl1read.

ed hole for reception` oi''a. threaded projection 3 of the thereto-fixedcover 4, adjust.

ment of Which serves to regulate (if any suchegulation is required) thevolume of air admitted to the lair tube. This air tube is inclosed by atube 5"'of larger diameter `'zuc'entral hole in which the air tube-ispassed @ad provided with an end 6. thrvlieii sion of atmospheric airintQ-I'Iiing'bpam; ber 1, wherein 1t 1s mixed Wlth -anvicom'-4 vbutiblefuel (natural or artificial) .that is supplied to cl1a.mber`7through gas-pipe 9 .which communicates with chamber', lpreferably nearthe butt end thereof, so as to's'e- Acurev as thorough'mixing aspossible of thel gas and 'air before l suchini'ptureV reaches. the ylil-e' tip.v A Bunsen burner'having avcentral tion of the describedyapparatus communiyCates With'the ,chamberfof a casing 10 that isintended to; represent anykindo structurer-heater', stove, radiator.,furnace, et..

'The vchahiber is also connected,pre'fe'rablyv` vby'a 'pipe 11 'with' acasing 12 inclosing a.

ifacuum. producing, and maintaining device. `operable in any suitablemanner (lirst) to create and maintain'a., substantial vacuum Within theclosed apparatus l(second) t0' contact with, the mixture until thevcentral. v'air bodyand gaseous o1' other'combustib'le mixturemtermingle to a certain extent-'at air passage is, thus obtained. Thetippor-` the tip. of the supplyapparatus; (fourth).

to'accelerate and intensify combustion ofthe'V mixture when 'it isignited ,at thetip of the outer ftube; and (fth) to carry off' theproductsof combustion -from Within the `easf ing and to remoyethelnfro'm the immediate vicinity-of the llame .rapidly and efficiently,

and to, prevent a possible change of beek'.i draftjwhich i impairs ordestroysthe com- Because of the central;

plete combustion. swiftly moving or properly highspeed airdraft, very'perfect combustion is obtained.

If desired, the .air inlets 8 may be closed bytheldamper yl ,h:wingperforations 13", ,so as to out off access of air to-mixingchamber 7 inwhich event unmixed O'as from' i' e l9 may lowinto chamber T and thenceto the tip oftheV outeij tube for mlxture'with ai r obtaine.

f combustion.- Ofcoursedamper 1 3 and coverv te a if 4 may be eachadjusted to regu-late and Vary -the.'admission of air to the chamberthat `they respectively control. witli'a regulating Valve 1 M indicatesa motor for driijing the'fan.

This apparatus is peculiarly'advantageous in burning natural gas in thatit ris readily .regulated to varythe Volume and lrelative- 1quantitiesof aii` admitted tothe tubes; and in using this apparatus-tlie annular flame obtained on ignition of ,the gas at the tip of theouter tube is interiorly exposed to a high-speed air-current or centraldraft, the

'speed depending on the completeness of Tthe I `vacuum. y

In Fig. 2,'tlie supply apparatusis so constructed as toreverse therelative location of the power-controlled air draft and the volume ofcombustible gas'. In'this form, the volume of combustible gas isconducted in what maybe called rod form,- considered yas a physicalobject, While the iin-mixed air f is conducted in tubular form,exteriorly of the' lcentral gasv volume. `In, thisl form of constructionthe air tuie'is indicated by 20,

of ores or metals; glass, cement,'etc., and,

45geiierally in `all arts- Where greatv heat isy the interior gas tubeby' Q1 and the. 'air inlet of vthe BunsenI burner by 22. Thedampercontrolled perforations in -the end Wall ,Gv

of the air tube are indicated .by 23, the gas supply pipe of the Bunsenburner tube by 24, and itscutoif valve by Q5; The perforated dainper.for perforations-QS is indi-l 'cated by a; and itsV perforations-byvThe casing ,or shellindicating any forni of use- .ful construction ofcombustion chamber is shown ywith a door a', so .that access may 'behadto the gas jet to light it. Any other suitable ignitionv device orine-ins may, of course, be used, i. A if My new method isapplicable invarious arts. It maybe practised, for example, by suitably constructedfurnaces for treatment .i required.,

ingy which incloses the Vacuum producing' I do not vlierein-clairii anyof the-apparatus herein shown, as .the same form the subject-rl matterof.my co-pendingv applications Serial Nos. 583,774 and 583,776, eachfiled September 26, i91o. Y

I have' shown the pipe" leading to, the casand maintaining device asbroken-away, to indicate the fact. that in ordinary installations, and,generally speaking', in all manuvfacti'iring installations, the vacuum'produc,

mg andmaiiitaining :device is located at .a point. substantially distantfrom the com'- bustioii chamber. As many Bunsen burners of similar"construction for admission of gaseous fuel andV combustionfsupporting'gas may communicate with the combustion.

chamber as thenature of the installation I burn'thecombustible inattenuated molecular condition lin a par tially-va-cuumized chamber.Bythe termgaseous fuel I include any a'nd vei'ery kind. of gasifyingfuel that can be used inthe practice of this method, Whether mixed orunmixed with air. i

i The casing 12a which incloses thevacuum producing and: maintainingdevice is hermetically connected with the pipe 11 which 'preventsentrance of back vdrafts through the casing-and' pipe into thecombustion chamber when the apparatus is in. operation. and thereforethen serves to maintain the' partially iacuunn'zed condition of' the.com- 1 u'stioii chamber and pipe and permitsthe removal immediatelyand'v continuously of the products of combustion, In all of theii'ormsof appaifatus'sliown, thefgasfmay be.

mixed withair before the mixture' 'reaches the point of combustion 'orflame.' and is therefore in a v better. combustible state at thecombustion point than it' Would be if" the mixing of the air and fuelWere delayed until it had reached the point of combustion.v

It will be 'noted that the vacuum producing and maintaining devicevWhich-is'operable .to prevent back drafts is substantially Aan integralpart of the apparatus .as a Whole. and that its connection is soconstructed that' ber to the atmosphere. The small openings,

in turn, make possible'the protection of the chamber againstatmbsphericinvasion, 'that is to sayfagainst the invasion of air inlarge masses which dilutesthe heat and'impedes the mixture of the gasandair;'or against the invasion of any air into the chamber beyond thatactually required for combus- -.tion.' This nice-,regulation ofthe air"lto meet. exactly the requirements of, combus "i tion is made possible byreason of the controloffboth the artificial suction and theair openings;therefore, there is-no passingl of unconsumed gas and air from the.exhaust as inthe various combustion appliances and 'methods employing naturalfdra'ft.' In other Words, prevention of lback'-cl'raftS, rarefaction of the mixed gasv and air and ofthe lair taken into the apparatus,rarefactin of the combustible mixture at the place of com hustion,rarefaction of the products of com-' bustion while they remain in theapparatus,

' and the creation and maintenance of a substantial vacuum throughoutthe entire inclosure are material points of the present invention, andby this invention are brought for the first time into such a unitary andpractical form, that approximately perfect combustion is obtainablewithout the use of high chimneys and with 'the minimum loss of heatunits.

"What I claim is Y 1 1. A method of combustion consisting inartificiallycreating a partial vacuum at the place of combustion,delivering a volume of gas in a highly rareed state to the place ofcombustion, maintaining a volume of air also in a highly rareed state,inclosing one volume within and out of Contact with the other, drawingthem to a point of combustion, and burning the same in a partial vacuumsubstantially sealed against excessive atmospheric invasion.

2. A method of combustion consisting in maintaining an inclosed volumeof gaseous fuel mixed with air in a highly rareied state, separatelymaintaining a volume of air also in a highly rareiied state, conductingthe gas and air to a place of union for combustion, and burning saidmixture in a partial vacuum substantially sealed against excessiveatmospheric invasion.

8. anethod of combustion consisting in artificially creating andmaintaining a partial vacuum, delivering a Velume of gas and a volume ofair, one interiorly of but out of Y contact with the other, into thevacuumized space toward and to the point of union for mixture andignition in the vacuumized space, and forcibly withdrawing the'productsof combustion through and out of said vacuumized space, thereby insuringagain@ back draft.

4. A'method of combustion consisting in artiiciallyvcreating and`maintaining a partial vacuum, conducting simultaneously a volume of gasand a. volume of air to a place of union for mixture in the vacuumizedspace, mixing the same and burning the mixture thereat substantiallysealed against atmospheric invasion, and forcibly withdrawing theproducts of combustion out of said vacuumized space.

5. A method of combustion consisting in artificially creating' andvmaintaining a partial vacuum at the place of combustion, conducting gasand air thereto, mixing and burning the same thereat substantiallysealed against atmospheric invasion, and forcibly withdrawing therefromthe products of combustion.

6. A method of combustion consisting in supplying gas to a place ofcombustion, supplying air thereto by artificial suction, mixing andburning the gas and air thereat un' der artificial suction land by thesaid suction withdrawing the combustion products therefrom.

7. A method of combustion consisting in artificially controlling thesuction at the place of combustion, supplyinggas and air thereto, mixingand burning the same thereat under artiicial suction and by the saidsuction withdrawing the combustion products therefrom.

In testimony whereof I have axed my signature in presence of twowitnesses.

ALCORN RECTOR. Witnesses:

Vlr-ALTER YA'rns, Clins. F. RANDOLPH.

